The Star Wars Battlefront 2 drama has wiped out billions of dollars. Well OK, not directly, but close. According to CNBC, $3.1 billion of shareholder value has been wiped with EA’s stock having dropped 8.5% in the past month. With sales of the game lower than expected, Analysts have become increasingly concerned.
Writing to his clients, Stifel analyst Drew Crum wrote, “We were underwhelmed by sell-through for Star Wars: Battlefront II (EA) over the Black Friday weekend, which follows a controversial launch for the game.”
The new formation of the NCGP to tackle “unscrupulous videogame companies” but it’s not entirely clear what their mission is and who they represent came as a surprise to many gamers. It remains to be seen whether or not these and other attempts at regulation will have any meaningful effect.
Today, EA held Telecom Conference with Credit Suisse. It’s not up yet, but you may be able to find a transcript of the discussion here in the next day or so. I’m not sure what EA’s criteria is when deciding which ones to transcribe.
EA’s Blake Jorgensen talked about the Star Wars Battlefront 2 microtransaction situation, and justified the decision to (temporarily) pull them from the game in the following manner: “We pulled off on the microtransactions, because the real issue the consumer had was they felt it was a pay-to-win mechanic.”
And of course, some people would be annoyed by being treated purely as a consumer, as am I. Lets hope EA can pull out of this nosedive and help the game industry correct as a whole.
